The Phelps Timeline

Posted by Capn Coconuts On 0 comments

The following is a text-based timeline of Fred Phelps's life, the lives of his children, and the major activities of Westboro Baptist Church.

There is no way I am going to mince words here. Recorded below are some of the grievous sins of Fred Phelps; these things are why he should have never been a father, let alone a pastor.

NOTE: This page is a work-in-progress, and is far from being complete. I'll add more entries to the timeline over time as I get more dates for significant events.
  • November 13, 1929: Fred Phelps is born.
  • 1946: Fred Phelps enrolls in Bob Jones University.
  • Summer 1947: Fred engages on a missionary assignment to join himself with a fundamentalist church, convert nonbelievers, and direct converts to that church. In his attempt, Fred goes to Utah to convert Mormons with two other students. After attacking the beliefs of an audience full of Mormons in a tent revival meeting, one student is flustered by the audience's first question and Fred almost uses violent force to keep more questions being asked.
  • May 20, 1956: Westboro Baptist Church formally opens with 50 attending (some of them being Eastside volunteers).
  • 1960: Eastside Baptist Church attempts to foreclose on the WBC property as it is now being used as residence.
  • 1968-1975: The Phelps children sell candy to support Westboro Baptist Church and to keep the household from poverty because Fred Phelps is too lazy or too vile to support the family himself.
  • Fall of 1970: Fred Jr. meets Debbie Valgos and starts dating her.
  • Early 1971: Fred Sr. finds out about Debbie Valgos and forbids further dating.
  • May 1971: Fred Sr. changes his strategy: he allows Fred Jr. to date as long as Debbie comes to WBC every Sunday. Fred Sr. then proceeds to call her a whore every time she visits, and reminds Fred Jr. that she is a whore every time she doesn't.
  • 1971: Fred Phelps orders candy from the Money Tree Candy Co. After gaining their trust from selling a small shipment, he receives a second, much larger shipment which is never paid off.
  • April 17, 1972: Debbie ingests half a bottle of Benzedrine... her heart stopping 1 AM the next morning. Mark Phelps says that he father danced and sang "The whore is dead! The whore is dead!"
  • November 8, 1977: The Kansas State Board of Law Examiners files a complaint against Fred Phelps for inappropriate conduct against court reporter Carolene Brady.
  • July 20, 1979: Fred Phelps is disbarred from Kansas courts (but not federal ones).
  • 1985: Nine federal judges file a complaint against Fred Phelps for false accusations against them.
  • 1989: Fred Phelps is disbarred from federal courts; two children are suspended for 18 months.
  • 1990: Fred Phelps runs for governor of Kansas... and loses.
  • 1991: Westboro Baptist Church begins its picketing practices. 
  • 1994: Fred Phelps runs for governor a second time; loses again.
  • 1998: WBC enters the national spotlight by picketing the funeral of a homosexual murder victim named Matthew Shepard. Also, Fred Phelps ran for governor of Kansas yet again... unsurprisingly, he loses again.
  • January 25, 2004: WBC pickets three Catholic and two Episcopalian churches in addition to the Federal Courthouse for taking part in legitimizing homosexual marriage in Iowa.
  • March 3, 2006: Matthew Snyder dies in Iraq. WBC pickets his funeral despite him not being gay; Matthew's father Albert sues.
  • June 25, 2009: Michael Jackson dies. Shortly afterward, WBC pickets his funeral and writes an adaptation of his song "We Are the World", naming it "God Hates the World".
  • October 6, 2011: Plans to picket Steve Jobs's funeral announced. Since the funeral was held privately, the picket never happened.
Sometime in the future, Fred Phelps will die. Will this child-abusing, life-ruining, suicide-driving, self-centered, utterly abominable monster go to heaven? You be the judge.
Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
--Galatians 6:7
God knows, Fred. You can make yourself look white on the outside, but God knows your wickedness within much better than I do. Always. Always.

Repent of your iniquity, lest thou reap thy reward.